Style A to Zee: eBay Fashion Gambit

Joe Zee puts a new spin on recycling and turns to eBay to accent your wardrobe

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My friends don't believe that when I go thrift store shopping, my palms itch. Not the itching-to-buy feeling, but an allergic reaction that even an aggressive scratch can't satisfy. After a few minutes of pawing through jammed racks, I often have to step outside. Of course, it's not really an allergy—or even snobbery, for that matter. Just impatience. However, this wasn't always the case.

Back in high school, when I had no money, thrift stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army were my saving grace. I'd spend hours rummaging through dollar-bins to mimic the current trends. A no-lapel mustard jacket with shoulder pads by Romani could be

Thierry Mugler! A Sears King's Road pinstripe vest? Byblos! And on a few lucky days—and I mean very few—I may have scored, say, a real YSL jacket discarded unknowingly by a donor. That secondhand infatuation, however, was short-lived. When I started to get a paycheck, spending a lot of money for new designer clothes that resembled those dollar-a-pound threads was more satisfying.

Happily I rediscovered the joy of vintage clothes shopping during my first week at ELLE. Trendy fashion assistants roamed the hallways in crazy getups that resembled runway looks—or were wearing Alaïa dresses that were way too expensive for someone still clocking her daily hours. So how was this possible?

It wasn't until I pressed that I got the real answer: eBay. Aha! It's the modern-day thrift store that merchandises to your taste, sorts by brand, alerts you when your request has arrived, and is open to anyone with a catchy screen name. My assistant, Annie Ladino (azidburnz), and our bookings editor, Malina Joseph (malinaj123), are big champions of eBay shopping. For them, eBay is "an unlikely source to satisfy my craving for constant reinvention," says Malina. But I think it's more about scoring original Pucci dresses for under $50. The philosophy isn't so much that eBay is a cheap alternative to boutiques (it is), but that it's where you can find one-of-a-kind and long-extinct pieces that you covet.

So for this month's column, I drilled the fashion girls to get their best eBay-insider tips on finding the "score" and beating the competition. (Malina, bottom right, and a model wear our favorite finds.) What's more eco than shopping recycled fashion, even if you do have to virtual-wrestle some style-obsessed minion halfway across the country for those perfect Prada boots? And the best part of all was my palms didn't itch once. See you online (jztheman23)!

Be Smart
Keywords will improve your search. It's easy to find something by a designer's name, but try looking by style, genre, celebrity style icon, or fabric—you'll be surprised by what pops up. Whether you type in tribal or Kate Moss, you'll find more of what you're looking for. Lastly, try entering the word used or vintage for different results.

Play Dumb
Be creative when searching. Deliberately misspell any proper name, as it can often lead you to an undiscovered item. For example, Yves Saint Laurent might be categorized under "Eves Saint Laurent" by someone oblivious to spelling. It doesn't necessarily mean the item is fake; it probably means you're dealing with a dim bulb.

The Lucky Penny Rule
When setting your maximum bid, always add that extra cent. If your bidding is set for $60.01, that extra cent will beat out someone whose maximum bid is $60. Also, don't bid in even amounts. Most bidders tend to do that—odd amounts can make the difference between win and lose.

Hire a Middle Man
Don't spend your day monitoring that dress. For a small fee (one percent of the final auction price, in some cases), you can hire an "automatic sniper" to keep tabs and bid on that item for you in its final minutes. Check out esnipe.com or bidsniper.com for details.

Check the Size
If you're unsure of your size, it's safer to buy larger than smaller and take it to a tailor. Especially for vintage clothing—you can always transform someone's 1960s floral maxidress into a fresh, summery minidress.

Build a Relationship with the Seller
If you go back to the same vendor repeatedly, e-mail that person and ask to preview items before they land on eBay.

Go to the Source
I tend to search iconic designers like Claude Montana and Kansai Yamamoto. Although many of these designers don't produce ready-to-wear anymore, they serve as inspiration to many current collections.

Buyer Beware
Fakes are a problem. Proceed with caution, make sure the seller has a return policy, and report scam artists to eBay!